Eeeek, well done pics of an ominous looking sky! My trees keep blowing over - they're not as happy. Going to try replacing one of my foam pots with a smaller, clay azalea pot. Maybe the lower profile and weight will help keep it upright? Such a crazy summer in the Northeast this year....

Hi Mike!
Our sky has looked like that lately !! Maybe I'll get a pic up later. Just got them in puter a few minutes ago.

I'm glad your all O.K. :)

Back later.:)

JoJo

Hi Mike,
Here's a few of a storm we had a few days ago..

Another headed our way right now..lol..
My trees are in large enough containers, but i've had to pick up a few other plants.

{{gwi:606924}}

It does rain once in awhile in Arizona..lol..

{{gwi:606925}}

Sunrise with a storm building..

{{gwi:606926}}

{{gwi:606927}}

Talk to you soon..

JoJo

Jojo, Wow..

I would certainly have to say that next to my plants, weather is my other calling!
I actually chase storms around here with a couple of friends, then report back to the weather stations!!

I LOVE cloud formations, and I love what they do to my plants..I swear the lightning injects them with steroids..lol

Beautiful pictures...Did you get lot's of thunder and lightning? This other than sunny warm humid days is my best weather...I just wish we got storms the way we use to years ago...Now if we get 3 or more around here all summer, we are lucky as compared to 30 or more just 20 years ago...Now it's drought every summer until the cooler temps and ocean fog and drizzle moves in about October...

Does anyone else have any awesome storm pictures? Hail, lightning, cloud pictures? It is crazy to see the kind of weather that our citrus trees can survive and thrive in..

Hugs to you Jojo!!Nite

Mike

Hi Mike!
Well, it's our monsoon season.. so I may be able to get a few more pics..;) I love the clouds this time of year, just not the storms! LOL!

I'm not surprised you chase them..LOL!! You nut! ROFL! but luv ya anyway!

We've had a few good storms, the worst was Friday eve. My parents are helping some neighbors put fences back up and clean right now.

I hope some others post!! I love seeing these kind of pics. :)
Where's Josh? he always has fun stuff..:)

Talk to You soon!
Hugs,
JoJo

no storm pics here, unfortunately we havent had measurable rain in weeks. This week is going to be tough 100+ temps all week with indexes in the 110+ range and 70% humidity. Its like trying to breathe through a wet towel.

Hey mike

thats a funny name for a bank in the first picture, lol

That is a funny name for a bank! ROFL!!

Here's a few more pics.
I guess we had micro bursts this weekend and a tree snapped here in the park. Not as bad as the news had said it would be . These are building up about 2 pm..

{{gwi:606929}}

Sunset....Clouds are off to the east.. You cant beat an Arizona sunset. :)

{{gwi:606931}}

Lovely shots, Mike and JoJo!!!
Mike, storms definitely charge the air!

JoJo, I think we were able to see some of the
massive cloud formations over Nevada and Arizona
over the past week.

Josh

Memorial Day Monday a few years ago. I'd JUST finished planting some 30 display containers for the gardens & decks when this ......
{{gwi:32514}}

frustration came to visit. Most of the plants recovered physiologically, but as far as appearance goes .... it wasn't a good year for containers.

The sky brooding before the storm ......
{{gwi:239125}}

Al

Hahahahahhahahahahahahlolololhahahahhahah, oh God, Al, you are too funny while at the same time I feel bad.lololololoolol
hahahhah
Wait, I have to compose myself..

I LOVE those frogs!

Does everyone see how realxed and happy that frog looks sitting there in that beautiful surrounding, before the destruction of that paradise ?...God, it looks so content, no a worry about what is about to happen...lol

Is that Hail???? What the heck Al...Is that the storm that struck your home? Now it becomes serious...Unbeleivable picture...Those frogs on the ground don't seem to be bothered...Did the one on the stump stay there?
Wow.
Al, I ALWAYS like to thank you for helping me, and many here make is possible to have such beautiful, vibrant, and healthy plants such as you have..Thanks for sharing and being here, after all these years, on these forums!

Jojo, I didn't even think Arizona got such huge beautiful clouds like that. Everytime I go, I can never find one cloud in the sky..Amazingly beautiful...

Josh, where are your cloud pics? From what I hear, you can have some big one too, right? If there isn't that pesky fog all the time...

Maderin, did you ever change your pots? What do they look like?

Mksmth, has it even rained yet? Thank God the temps are coming now...

Mike

Thanks for the kind words, Mike.

No, this isn't the storm during which our house was struck by lightning - this one was a few years back. All the containers you see in the second picture, plus another dozen or more, scattered in other gardens & on another deck had all been freshly planted, so you can imagine what they looked like after the hail. I literally could have cried. I was so frustrated by the thought that all that effort and expense had been ruined in less than 5 minutes. Even the stuff in the ground was badly battered & bruised. Many of the plants with closed buds had bud damaged, distorting the blooms. I'm sure others have suffered through the same, but it WAS a mess. I'm over it now, but it's still painful to think about.

Take care.

Al

Hey Mike

No measurable rain yet, we had a light sprinkling that only raised the humidity. None forecast-ed for this week either. My water bill is going to be pricey.

Mike,
it hasn't rained here for about two months... ;)
From my foothill elevation, I'm able to watch the Thunderheads forming over
the Sierra Nevada range...but seldom do we enjoy any of the action.

Does fog count? Here's some fog from my trip to Patrick's Point last week...
Agate Beach overlook:

{{gwi:606933}}

Josh

Josh, don't you sort of wish you could be right in the action at times?

I love the sound of storms, the excitement behind them, except for the devastation..

Last year was a whole different story for me...It was just as you pictured..Drizzly, cool, and fogy most of the summer, while just 30 miles inland, much warmer, sunnier and quite often the thunderstorms...

Nice picture and thank you..

Al, I can only imagine how pretty your yard must look like noe, and that frog still sitting in what looks like a very comfortable spot..Where did you get them anyway? I love them...

Mike

{{gwi:13162}}

{{gwi:3283}}

{{gwi:3282}}

{{gwi:4839}}

{{gwi:3264}}

{{gwi:3289}}

{{gwi:11730}}

{{gwi:13163}}

From my Mom

I LOVE THEM!!!!!!!!!!Al

So do I Al..I am jealous...lol

wow what geogorous pics
OMG Josh
i wanna come live with YOU love the ocean..oh how peaceful!
i got frogs in my ponds but they sure are not as cute as all the ones pictured LOL
Mike this is for you:::
{{gwi:606941}}
{{gwi:606944}}

Buylady,
I was born by the ocean, but I don't live there anymore.
The weather, the people, and the economy are too depressed up north....
But I love to visit the Pacific to calm my spirit.

Josh

Oh, Thank You Buylady....

Those clouds look like they are building for a storm...I miss those kind. Bug, fat, puffy thunderheads!

We rarely get them anymore..:-(. Now that the drier weather has moved in and the angle of the sun is getting lower fast, the chances of seeing a thunderstorm around here is almost nill...Only one ALL summer...Wierd..

We are in a major drought! Normally years ago, all you had to do was wait on the fresh rain to feed the plants..Now it's the hose almost everyday...Of course then has to come the vinegar every week, since my water is so akaline!

Miss those good ole days..

Josh, I am just lucky not to get all that fog you get..No wonder you have such beautiful moss there...:-).Like Ireland, nice and green..

Jojo gets monsoons, and then nothing for weeks after that....lol

Mike

I stare jealously at JoJo's monsoons, mounting over the Eastern Mountains....

Half the year is green here; half the year is gold.

Josh

If I only had remembered! We had tornadoes about a month ago. Thank god they missed my neighborhood. They were about 25 minutes away from me. F2, and f3 tornadoes reported. If you go to YOU tube you can check it out under tornado Mayville NY 2010. You could not have paid me to go and be a storm chaser for that one. Same day about 1.5 hours east of us they had tornadoes and they had the worst of the storm. Massive damage. Thank god, nobody killed but severe damage. They are still trying to get FEMA to help out.
Hey Al,
That is a variegated brugs right? BEAUTIFULL!! Where did you get it? I would like to add one to my collection. Sorry to hear about your tragedy. Most people don't give a crap about that stuff unless they are really into plants like we are.
Andrew

Josh, if you are into thunderstorms at all as I am, or a storm chaser, then I can only imagine the sadness that befalls you knowing you are miles from watching, being in the middle of the action, or recording a good one..I love the sound of thunder and what the rain does to my plants.

I guess I am lucky knowing that someday, we might get them the way we use to, or I can drive just 30 miles or so west where the hills and forest are, and still catch some nasty and huge ones when ever I want..:-)

Your area still sounds abosultey beautiful and amazing whether you get these dark ominous clouds and storms or not.

I know from the looks of things, your plants LOVE growing in your area, with or without the lightning and all this torrential rain...

Mike
.

A - The brug was a cutting/gift from ? I tended it for 2 years & it never bloomed, so I passed on cuttings to friends in more favorable climes & let the frost take it.

Even my wife doesn't understand how upsetting it can be when she breaks a branch off a plant, or knocks a bonsai off it's perch ...... 'they're just plants', right?

Al

Good Morning Everyone!
I've sure enjoyed all the pics!

Al,
I love all the little frogs! They are so cute!!! Hubby likes the big guy squishing the little one..lol!
We had a similar storm a few years back in the first of June! I did cry.. no kidding!
My lettuce was shredded... green house tipped over and I lost over 100 plants! So I know how you feel Al. ;)

Buylady, Good to see you here, and pictures.:)

Hi Josh! The fog is breath taking! wow!! If you vist between July and sept.. I'll share my clouds and storms. ;)
Same for You Mike..
If you were here durring clear skys.. you missed storm season which is now. :)

mksmth.. where are you that your not getting storms or rain?

Here's one of the frogs in my yard. at least I hope he's still here. LOL! Every summer we go out and rescue tadpoles and my son raises them. Here's a baby toad. :)

{{gwi:43198}}

His Castle.. :)

{{gwi:33239}}

We turned about 6 loose so far. :)

Have a great day everyone and be safe!

JoJo

Looking up from the frogs perpective, I'll bet you seem like Godizilla..lol

That thing has too be as big as a pinhead..!

You are right about Al's frogs being cute too..
Kids, husband, plants, working on the house, dogd, cats, and now frogd? When on Gods earth do you ever have time for YOU..? You are definately gifted..:-)

Goodmorning...Wonder if Josh is up and has his coffee yet.../Lol

What a great set up..I love it..I too was wondering where Mksmth lives..I bet right around the corner from me, if it hasn't rained in weeks other than that storm I posted.

Mike..:-)

Jojo, no kidding..Can you beleive how nice Buylady's plants are starting to look?

Yes, I've had my coffee....!
Been in my second cup for a while now ;)

JoJo, I love toads. We have a toad season, too.
If you stand outside at night, you can hear their big fat bodies flumping around under bushes.
Of course, we find toad-mummies flattened in the road all the time...

Buylady's plants are looking great, indeed. Complete turnaround.

I'll get a pic of my frogs later.

Josh

Hey, folks!
Mike, for fun, a pic I took earlier this afternoon at the gas station.
The weather was very pleasant today, with lots of clouds passing in front of the sun.

{{gwi:606949}}

Josh

Hi Everyone!
Josh,
Great picture! That sky is so blue. I can't belive all that cloud and no rain.
So you like frogs and toads too! :) Aren't we a great bunch with tons in common. ;)
Hope to see more pics soon!

My mom has a few mummies in her yard. LOL!
I found one, that the little guy looked like he just died in his sleep.

I could be all day in Al's yard and not get tired of all there is to see!

Huge storm last night, but no pics. Wind, dust and being a lightning rod just aren't my thing! LOL!

Mike~
Our little toads are about the size of pea gravel if even that. :) So tiny and cute!!!!!! I didn't think to put something for showing size.

I will if we get any more.

We have one tadpole left that is huge, so we are thinking it will be one of the Colorado River Toads.

Have a great day everyone!!
JoJo

Thanks, JoJo!

We're known for our blue sky over here in California!
I pointed the camera due East, by the way, in the general direction in which you all live...

Yes, the Greenman is a friend to the frog and the toad.
I keep several frogs in my employ - mostly in the ferns and hoyas, which have drip-trays.

Yesterday, I said hello to this little guy (who inhabits my Alaskan Fern with two of his buddies):

{{gwi:43117}}

Josh

Lol...Hello everyone...

Josh that sky is beautiful ad Jojo says....! I'll bet it gets so blue, that you can see the moon in the middle of the afternoon with the sun out..

I too love frogs and yes, fire flies...
I catch them before they get squashed racing across the local highway after a storm...Then I let them go in my yard,which they find plenty of places to live back there..lol

As for the fire flies..I catch them at my sisters with my little niece, and we let them go in my yard too..Now, every year, they come back in the summer, and stick around just my yard..Wierd, ha?

Josh, those clouds I took, were facing west...lol.

Well, today we finally got some rain..But not the nice thunderstorm ones I miss, but the fog and drizzle from the ocean that doesn't allow them to develope...Oh well. Some rain is better than none, no matter what form...We need it.

Josh,
What kind of fern would you say is best for container growing that I can leave in the same container year after year?
Jojo and Josh, would you leave your Jades outside in thsi type rain, or put them under cover?

I can't believe that no one else on these forums has no clouds to show..

It is good to see you guys...

Mike

jojo

we are in northeast oklahoma, we have had 1 inch of rain so far this month,about a week ago, and had 7.75 inches in july. Thats pretty typical for us. The heat has been the real bad thing. Upper 90's and low 100's for 3 weeks now. Heat indexes close to 110. Even the big established trees are dropping leaves. There is no rain forecasted for this week but we should get cooler temps by the weekend. My citrus have been doing great though.

Mike, clear skies overhead for us.

Mike,
I take advantage of Summer rain when it appears - to clean my Jades off.
But after a good rinsing, I usually move them under my patio umbrella.

Josh

here is some shots just before a storm last night, yippee! finally got some good rain.

fortunately the winds were not all that bad and everything survived just fine.
these I got when I was videoing the lightning. It looks like it hit the house, but it was a ways off.

{{gwi:606952}}

and my favorite

{{gwi:606954}}

Mksmth, How in the world did you get such a beautiful display of lightning?
Amazing and thank you for showing us! I hope your trees got loads of nitrogen from that one..

Josh, I would think that your jades love a bath after days of dust in the air...How do they look anyway?

Here is a couple of pictures of the ocean after my tree survived the winds of the remnants of Earll

{{gwi:606957}}
{{gwi:606960}}

{{gwi:606964}}

{{gwi:606966}}

Mike..:-)

Nice surf pics, Mike!

I posted some Jade pics on your Summer Campers Thread.
Check 'em out!

Josh

surfs up Mike! lol

I was using my HD Flip video camera. You can break the shots down frame by frame, and it just happened to be perfect.

Mike is that you with a cigarrette in your mouth?lol

I almost look like that!

Here is a lightning picture I took last month. I hope you all like it. It is as close as you will ever get to the moon. It took my friend and I an expensive camera to get this shot!

{{gwi:606969}}

haha haha thats too funny what happened on my post. The original pictures were on my tinypic account that mysteriously deleted all the pictures I had in it. Apparently tiny pic assigned a new image to the same html code and now those show up.

It would be nice is we could edit our own post here like you can pretty much everywhere else.

mike

LOL! It's Gone Mksmth...

Well here's a little something for my dear friend Meyer Mike..

{{gwi:606976}}

{{gwi:606979}}

{{gwi:606982}}

{{gwi:606986}}

Mike, this is the storm from a few nights ago! And yes, it did storm good! Our river runs with every storm this summer, they have been big right from the start of monsoon season.

And it's this one, as to why we have the baby bird now. :-)

Funny thing is , I was just up loading these to photobucket last night when this thread showed up! LOL!!! Good timing!
;-)

Hi Mike:

Check these out. After Florida, Tucson has the highest amount of cloud to ground lightning strikes. These are from last year's monsoon season.

{{gwi:606988}}

{{gwi:606990}}

{{gwi:606992}}

{{gwi:606994}}

And, after the storm had passed:

{{gwi:606996}}

Peter

Peter!
Those are amazing pictures!
I'm in Tucson also.

So that's what one of our storms looks like? I'm a big chicken and go and hide when the lightning starts. lol!

Thanks for posting those!

JoJo

OH MY GOD!!!!!

I had my best friend over last night who is a professional photographer and he was quite impressed with those lightning pictures Peter!!!!!
That is what we do here. We are thunderstorm chaser and look for perfect lightning shots. I really appreciate these pictures. Just amazing!
What a beautiful rainbow! Thank you so much.

I think would be must safer kept in-doors during those type of storms!
Jojo, that is ok. You get me the beautiful cloud formations and a bit of hail if you would like and we will leave the lightning pictures for the pros!lol
I love the clouds you took. I never imagine Arizona with such storms as though! I have been there countless of times and always wished I could see that! I have also heard of flooding rains which I never saw.
Thank you so much for remembering to post be some beautiful pics Jojo!

Mike: I would of just said YUP and leave it at that..lol
All the girls here wanted me to ask you for your phone number!lolol

Have a great day all.

Mike

Hey Mike!!

I think I see a picture of Josh in the second set of pictures on your post!

That knight ready to pull the arrow. See it? lol

Hey JoJo: Where in Tucson are you located? I am over on the far east side next to Saguaro NP East. Just an FYI, the first picture was the Catalina Mountains getting hit and then obscured by rain.

Mike: I am relatively safe since these are being taken on my front porch which has a brick overhang built over the porch and is open to the north. Sometimes I go into my garage which faces directly west over downtown. And, Mike if you ever come again to Arizona, drop down to Tucson and I am sure those of us posting here would be happy to entertain you....Especially if it is monsoon season and the washes are running. This weekend is supposed to be interesting since the moisture from Tropical Storm Don, currently in the Gulf of Mexico is supposed to be flowing into Tucson and stoking the monsoon storms. 60% chance of storms all day Sunday. Hopefully it will rain and we won't need to drip irrigate.

What I haven't figured out is how to do this kind of photography during the day since the time exposures would come out over-exposed.

Regards,

Peter

Hi Mike!
I'm glad you'll be happy with just clouds! LOL! Actually, during monsoon's we get some pretty sever storms! They up root tree's , flooding, and property damage. Our monsoon's are July-Sept. And we get storms every few days.

Peter!
Hello! Nice to meet you. :-)

I'm way on the other side! LOL! SW, near A mountain. I can see it from our back door. :-)
I lived near Catalina's yrs. ago.(Off of Catalina and Tanque verde hyw.)sp.? Not far from where you took the pic from the looks of things.

If Mikes ever in Tucson and doesn't yell, he'll be in a lot of trouble! lol! I'm right next to the Santa Cruz River and it's a sight to see when running strong!

Thanks again Peter for showing those amazing pics, I wasn't kidding when I said I have no clue what our storms look like. I hide! LOL!

News is saying a very wet weekend. Looks like it's building up good today!

TTYS,
JoJo

Peter: It is a whole other world taking pics like that during the day. My friend is trying to figure that out although he gets some great cloud formations before and after the storms. Nice work. I hope to see more pics by you.

Jojo: I have heard the monsoons can be quite dramatic! I have even seen the storm drains dug all around the outskirts of peoples home but never saw them fill up. I can only imagine that. I have seen lightning from a distance and been very frustrated chasing them because the roads there a long and straight with no way to turn down another for miles to catch up to it..lol Been there done that. Have you ever seen lightning drop from the clouds over the prairies or horizon? It must be majestic!
It is nice to meet Peter. It is always nice to see new faces.
I would never come there without visiting some very nice people here if the offer is there. Going there to see people I know would be so nice.
We would have to visit the Indian Reservations though, Saguaro Cactus Preserve, and look for turquoise jewelry..lol
I have danced with the Navaho tribes once before!

I hope many others come here with nice pictures. I would of loved to have sene the hail storm ones that some here have experienced!

Mike